[Johannesburg] Housing and Land: We demand answers

About 40 communities from southern Johannesburg have united under the banner of Gauteng Civics. The Gauteng Civics have summonsed the national Minister of Human Settlements, the Gauteng MEC for Human Settlement, Mr Paul Mashatile, and the Mayor of the City of Joburg, Herman Mashaba, to our mass rally on Saturday 19 August to answer our demands for housing and land.

We have many housing problems. These include overcrowding, a growing backlog, an increase in informal settlements and backyard dwellings, evictions and house repossessions, financial discrimination against the "missing middle."The problems are made worse by crime, drugs erratic and unaffordable electricity and water supplies, women and child abuse, mass unemployment and poverty. Working class and poor communities are all marginalized.

Let us unite and hold government to account!!

Provincial and national government representatives have promised that they will build houses and even identify land for this pupose. They have invited communities to participate in verification of the housing waiting lists and registration for houses. But the process has been marked by chaos, administrative bungling, indifference and arrogance by officials. Whilst promising to identify land and build houses, the housing budget has reportedly been slashed. The DA Mayor has argued that he has no budget to meet housing needs.

We have now decided to invite the Minister and Gauteng MEC for Human Settlement as well as Mayor to report back to us collectively as united communities on progress with meeting our demands. We warned them that should they fail to accept our invitation or meet our demands, we will embark on a united roling campaign of mass action.

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Comments (1 of 1)

Our Mass Rally planned for Sunday, 23rd July 2017 at the Eldorado Park Stadium has been cancelled by the JMPD!! The Mass Rally was called to get the Minister of Human Settlements, the Gauteng MEC of Human Settlements and the Mayor of the City of Johannesburg to give answers to the demand we gave them in May for houses and land – this was after we marched all over southern Johannesburg to wake them up to our needs.

The Johannesburg Metro Police Department banned the Mass Rally on Friday, 21st July. The police had been informed in advance, the emergency services and the local councillors were also informed – even the Community Policing Forum were made aware of the Mass Rally and they were requested to provide assistance with security.

We are not fooled. We know the real reason behind the ban is that the JMPD was put under political and criminal pressure by politicians, councillors and mafias.

Leading up to the Mass Rally activists of the Greater Eldorado Park United Civic, the hosts of the event, were threatened and physically assaulted. They were assaulted in the presence of the chairperson of the Community Policing Forum. Known criminals threatened to petrol bomb the stadium. After initially blessing the Mass Rally, DA councillors used everything at their disposal to sabotage the Mass Rally. One councillor even phoned the manager of the Eldorado Park stadium instructing him to cancel the permission they had already given.

Earlier this week the police were informed of all these threats, assaults and shenanigans. The name of at least one of the perpetrators is known to them. Why is the JMPD siding with corrupt politicians and criminals? Why is it not arresting those who are known provocateurs? Why is the JMPD not doing its duty of protecting the right of people to assemble and meet freely?
The reason is simple: to protect the corrupt and incompetent ANC Government and the DA Mayor!! Now that is it time for them to answer and make good on their promises, the police, local mafias, DA councillors and business people with cosy relationships with them, are used to deny people the freedom of assembly.

We will not be stopped!!

The Mass Rally will go ahead, a new date will be set. No police, no criminal, no corrupt councillor or politician is going to stop us from having our Mass Rally.